SD-10G Range checking
 

Me and a friend have both recently purchased SD-10G's with the 7ch receivers and we both noticed that the range in the low power mode in very short
with the 7ch maybe at best 30 steps on mine and on his about 20 steps. I did however do a range check on mine with a 10ch receiver and it is has a
lot longer range as walk canfar enough that I cant see my surfaces move and it still works.

RE: SD-10G Range checking
 

When you are range checking the 7 Ch Rx, do you have your SD-10G set to FHSS 1.? The 10 Ch Rx is FHSS 3. Just a thought. My 7 Ch or 8 Ch range checks with mine are normal. I get the required 30 paces or more. Antenna placement can be a factor, so range checking with the airplane in different positions could make a difference in the amount of range you get.

If you can't get the required distance, I wouldn't fly those 7 Ch Rx's until you figured out what the problem(s) are. Since you can get the required distance when range checking with a 10 Ch Rx, I don't think that your problem is with the Tx.

J

RE: SD-10G Range checking
 

I have flown my 7ch and it works fine but it would appearthat the 7ch has a shorter range in
in the check mode. I was hopeing that someone from airtronics would chime in on this.

When fss3 mode you cant operate the 7ch.

RE: SD-10G Range checking
 

How long is 30 steps for you? Range test in low-power mode with FHSS-1 receiver should be 80-100 feet. If you're getting less than that there are some things to check for.

FHSS3 is going to test longer and may not be affected by the same conditions as the FHSS1 equipment. So, putting in the one receiver to test against the other doesn't help much in terms of diagnosis as to a short range test on the FHSS1

Check these things.
1. Obstructions between the tx and rx antenna. Bench, tree, etc.
2. Try the test from a different angle from the airplane and see if it's the same range. Could indicate needing to move the antennas.
3. Are the antennas 1 foot off of the ground or more? A proper range test should have the antennas two feet off the ground. So put the plane on a table or stand perhaps?
4. Unplug all of the servos except 1, try again. Sometimes a servo that is starting to wear internally can give off extra interference that can in some cases shorted the range a little.
5. Make sure TX antenna is not pointed at the RX antenna
6. Make sure the RX battery is not low. Low voltage receiver battery/powersource can lead to lower range tests.

If you need further assistance, you might contact the service dept directly

Mike

RE: SD-10G Range checking
 

I too had a problem when doing a range check with the SD-10G. I could not get more than 45 feet from my 7 channel FHSS1 receiver before I started getting glitches and at 50 ft I had lost all control of the receiver.

I called tech support about the problem. The guy on the phone said hang on a few and he would go talk with a service tech. A few min later he came back and told me 45 to 50 feet for a range test was ok and the manual that said 90 feet was a misprint. He said the range check power on the SD-10G was lower than expected (I tested the same receiver with my RDS8000 and got about 125 ft before I started glitching).

So my question is what is correct 45 feet or 90 ft for the SD-10G. I seem to be getting mixed reports here about range testing. My antennas were 90 deg apart as per the manual and in an all balsa model.

RE: SD-10G Range checking
 

Our tech says the factory spec is 50 feet. However, as I said, I do expect 80-100 feet or so. The RDS8000 range test is longer than the SD-10G because the range test output is simply a little greater.

My go/no-go is 50 feet. But in every case where I have experienced that shorter range, moving the antennas or wiring and/or checking for a noisy component or servo has always resulted in a longer test result. I know people have said they have been fine with a 30 foot range test, but I do not recommend that nor am I comfortable with it.

So, for example, one of our pilots found that his range was diminished (only about 30 feet). Moving the antennas resolved the issue, now from all angles his range test is over 80 feet. The issue was that the antennas were a little too close to the computer for his Turbine engine.

And, as I mentioned earlier, the range test must be performed with nothing between you and the model and the model needs to be up 2-3 feet off the ground.

Mike

RE: SD-10G Range checking
 

Ira D, I had this issue at first with an electric that had a bunch of carbon fiber in it. I ended up poking one of the antennas out the bottom of the plane, got 28 paces and said OK try it. I have flown that plane a lot and I even put it out there where I can barely see it, never any problems. So what am I getting at, does your plane have carbon fiber in it? If so, you will need to adjust your antennas and one may need to go out of the plane. I was able to get 25 steps with both antennas inside, but by poking one out the bottom I got 28 steps. Oh, and this was with the RX600 and SD10G.
Jeff Williams

RE: SD-10G Range checking
 

edit

RE: SD-10G Range checking
 

RE: SD-10G Range checking
 

Edit due to some malfuction caused multple posts.

RE: SD-10G Range checking
 

Hi Jeff

My plane is all balsa no carbon and has good in flight range withthe 7 chand im not aware of anyone that is having in flight range issues with
the 7 ch, However the last few post have confirmed what I supected all along and that is the 7 ch receivers have very short range checks with
the SD-10G as 50 ft is a bit on the short side by most standards. I plan to continue using my receiver as long as in flight performance is good.

My reason for posting here was to see if our receivers were the only one with the short range checks andim relleved to see thats not the case.

RE: SD-10G Range checking
 

Glad you found an answer ira d. Happy flying!!!
Jeff Williams